Sunday School

Thanks, Reg!

Delusions may not be good, but there’s usually some kind of explanation why people hold them, that is logical in itself.

Have a great week everyone!

Beliefs have a social purpose. Does this explain delusions?

Social purposes doesn’t mean that they are necessarily good. Racism has a social purpose. Mob violence has a social purpose. Believing that an Albino is a witch that will curse your children…has a social purpose. Some of these social purposes are purposes that don’t serve humanity and…[Read more]

Beliefs have a social purpose. Does this explain delusions?

I always think that deslusions, certainly psychiatric ones, aren’t completely illogical.  They may be fixed, and resistant to contradictory information, but that’s not the same thing.

For example, in normal everyday life, we are all monitored constantly by each other and by ourselves…[Read more]

Thanks, Reg 🙂

Have a great week everyone!

If you can’t determine right from wrong then you lack empathy, not religion.

Simon Paynton wrote:

It seems that demons are a human archetype, for some reason.

I think it comes from the same creative force that art comes from, and has the same kind of contagiousness. As for the origin of some hallucinations, I’ll bet that the accelerated evolution of human brains and culture had to also come with a few “flaws” that haven’t…[Read more]

The belief that demons have sex with humans runs deep in Christian and Jewish traditions.

When I was suffering from depression in 1996, I used to “see” demons coming out of holes in the wall and “hear” them yelling at me that they “are going to take you back to hell with us”.  They were a lot like the classical medieval images of demons.  They d…[Read more]

Thanks, Reg!

Have a great week everyone!

“Scientists do not join hands every Sunday and sing “Yes gravity is real! I know gravity is real! I will have faith! I believe in my heart that what goes up, up, up must come down, down, down. Amen!” If they did, we would think they were pretty insecure about the concept.”

Dan Barker.

A robotic Theory of Mind.

This is a really interesting experiment to do with the objective reality (bird’s eye view) of a cooperative situation.  I think it applies as perspective-taking in a cooperative situation, but not when we’re trying to guess what someone is thinking.

Apparently it is very hard to ascertain someone else’s internal…[Read more]

Just so everyone knows, the kettle boiling link is a satire site with a general right-wing orientation.

Thanks, Reg!

Have a great week everyone!

“We, the people, far more alike than different, bring our many unique talents and skills together for the good of all. Tonight, I call for peace and understanding. Yes, I’m an atheist. I’m white. I’m a parent. I’m originally from Illinois. I’m a transgender woman. We are all different in many ways. If we have prejud…[Read more]

The Constitution DOES address the separation of church and state.

Yes, It is just that members of Project Blitz ignore that fact. I have on occasion explained that to school indoctrination boards in Texas.

PS – thanks for the video link last week for the book I referenced.

Great to see more about Pluto.

Indeed Davis, it is one of my favorite…[Read more]

Great to see more about Pluto. Perhaps before Earth sets on fire a few people will be able to escape and settle somewhere…and eventually get around to visiting Pluto. One day. Who knows.